Born and raised in Maywood, Illinois, Prine learned to play the guitar at age 14. He attended classes at Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music. After serving in West Germany with the U.S. Army, he returned to Chicago in the late 1960s, where he worked as a mailman, writing and singing songs first as a hobby and then as a club performer.
A member of Chicago's folk revival, a laudatory review by critic Roger Ebert built Prine's popularity. Singer-songwriter Kris Kristofferson heard Prine at Steve Goodman's insistence, and Kristofferson invited Prine to be his opening act, leading to Prine's eponymous debut album with Atlantic Records in 1971. The acclaim Prine earned from his first LP led to three more albums for Atlantic. He then recorded three albums with Asylum Records. In 1981, he co-founded Oh Boy Records, an independent label where he released most of his subsequent albums.
Widely cited as one of the most influential songwriters of his generation, Prine was known for humorous lyrics about love, life, and current events, as well as serious songs with social commentary and songs that recollect sometimes melancholy tales from his life.
Prine was the son of William Mason Prine, a tool-and-die maker, and Verna Valentine (Hamm), a homemaker, both originally from Muhlenberg County, Kentucky. He was born and raised in the Chicago suburb of Maywood. In summers, they would go back to visit family near Paradise, Kentucky. Prine started playing guitar at age 14, taught by his brother, David. He attended classes at Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music, and graduated from Proviso East High School in Maywood, Illinois. He was a U.S. Postal Service mailman for five years and was drafted into the United States Army during the Vietnam War era, serving as a vehicle mechanic in West Germany before beginning his musical career in Chicago.
Prine is widely regarded as one of the most influential songwriters of his generation. He has been referred to as "the Mark Twain of songwriting".
Johnny Cash, in his autobiography Cash, wrote, "I don't listen to music much at the farm, unless I'm going into songwriting mode and looking for inspiration. Then I'll put on something by the writers I've admired and used for years—Rodney Crowell, John Prine, Guy Clark, and the late Steve Goodman are my Big Four ..."
Roger Waters, when asked by Word Magazine in 2008 if he heard Pink Floyd's influence in newer British bands such as Radiohead, replied, "I don't really listen to Radiohead. I listened to the albums and they just didn't move me in the way, say, John Prine does. His is just extraordinarily eloquent music—and he lives on that plane with Neil [Young] and [John] Lennon." He later named Prine as among the five most important songwriters.
Prine's influence is seen in the work of younger artists, whom he often mentored, including Jason Isbell, Amanda Shires, Brandi Carlile, Sturgill Simpson, Kacey Musgraves, Margo Price, Tyler Childers, and Robin Pecknold.
The last song Prine recorded before he died was "I Remember Everything", released on June 12, 2020, alongside a music video. It was released following the two-hour special tribute show, A Tribute Celebrating John Prine aired on June 11, 2020, which featured Sturgill Simpson, Vince Gill, Jason Isbell, Kacey Musgraves, Bonnie Raitt, Rita Wilson, Eric Church, Brandi Carlile and many other country artists and friends.[45] On the first night of the 2020 Democratic National Convention, Prine singing "I Remember Everything" was the soundtrack to the COVID-19 memorial video.
Sam Stone
John Prine Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To his wife and family
After serving in the conflict overseas
And the time that he served
Had shattered all his nerves
And left a little shrapnel in his knees
But the morphine eased the pain
And the grass grew round his brain
With a purple heart and a monkey on his back
There's a hole in daddy's arm where all the money goes
Jesus Christ died for nothin' I suppose
Little pitchers have big ears
Don't stop to count the years
Sweet songs never last too long on broken radios, mmhmm
Sam Stone's welcome home
Didn't last too long
He went to work when he'd spent his last dime
And Sammy took to stealing
When he got that empty feeling
For a hundred dollar habit without overtime
And the gold rolled through his veins
Like a thousand railroad trains
And eased his mind in the hours that he chose
While the kids ran around wearin' other peoples' clothes
There's a hole in daddy's arm where all the money goes
Jesus Christ died for nothin' I suppose
Little pitchers have big ears
Don't stop to count the years
Sweet songs never last too long on broken radios, mmhmm
Sam Stone was alone
When he popped his last balloon
Climbing walls while sitting in a chair
Well, he played his last request
While the room smelled just like death
With an overdose hovering in the air
But life had lost its fun
There was nothing to be done
But trade his house that he bought on the GI bill
For a flag-draped casket on a local hero's hill
There's a hole in daddy's arm where all the money goes
Jesus Christ died for nothin' I suppose
Little pitchers have big ears
Don't stop to count the years
Sweet songs never last too long on broken radios, mmhmm
"Sam Stone" is a story about a war veteran who returns home to his wife and family after serving in a conflict overseas. However, the war has destroyed him mentally and physically; he suffers from PTSD and has shrapnel in his knees. He copes with his physical and emotional pain through a morphine addiction that eases his pain but "grows around his brain" and provides him with a false sense of confidence. He carries a "monkey on his back" meaning he is saddled with an addiction that he cannot shake off.
As he struggles to fit in with civilian life, Sam Stone starts to spiral out of control, losing money and eventually turning to theft to fuel his morphine habit. Like many addicts, Sam Stone seems to appreciate the euphoria and artificial happiness of being high more than he cares about his family or anything else in his life. Meanwhile, his children suffer as their father's addiction means that they have to wear other people’s clothes. The song concludes with Sam Stone overdosing and dying alone, leaving nothing behind except an empty house, and another broken family. The repeated phrase about a hole in daddy’s arm highlights the disastrous effects of addiction on families and society.
Line by Line Meaning
Sam Stone came home
After serving in the military overseas, Sam Stone came back home to his family.
To his wife and family
Sam Stone returned to his wife and kids after being away for a while.
After serving in the conflict overseas
Sam Stone was a soldier who was deployed to a warzone.
And the time that he served
Sam Stone spent a considerable amount of time in the military.
Had shattered all his nerves
Sam Stone's experience of serving in a combat zone had caused him a lot of distress.
And left a little shrapnel in his knees
Sam Stone was injured in battle and still had shrapnel in his body as a result.
But the morphine eased the pain
Sam Stone used morphine to manage his physical pain and distress from his time in the military.
And the grass grew round his brain
Sam Stone began to use marijuana to cope with the mental and emotional difficulties he faced after having served in a warzone.
And gave him all the confidence he lacked
Marijuana made Sam Stone feel more confident in himself.
With a purple heart and a monkey on his back
Even though he was decorated as a war hero with a Purple Heart, Sam Stone struggled with addiction after returning home.
There's a hole in daddy's arm where all the money goes
Sam Stone spends all his money on drugs and has track marks in his arm as a result.
Jesus Christ died for nothin' I suppose
The artist is expressing a sense of hopelessness and despair, that even the sacrifice of Christ doesn't seem to have made a difference in the world he sees around him.
Little pitchers have big ears
Children are much more perceptive than people give them credit for and can understand more than they are given credit for.
Don't stop to count the years
Life is short so it doesn't make sense to focus so much on time passing by.
Sweet songs never last too long on broken radios
The things we enjoy most are often fleeting and may not last forever.
Sam Stone's welcome home
Sam Stone's return home was not as welcoming or fulfilling as he might have hoped.
Didn't last too long
The homecoming didn't last long enough for Sam Stone to really adjust or recover.
He went to work when he'd spent his last dime
Sam Stone had to start working again at a job he didn't particularly find fulfilling because he had run out of money.
And Sam, he took to stealing
Sam Stone started resorting to stealing from others to support his drug habits.
When he got that empty feeling
Sam Stone's drug addiction left him feeling hollow and empty inside.
For a hundred dollar habit without overtime
Sam Stone was spending all of his money on drugs (about $100 a day) and was unable to work at a job that paid overtime.
And the gold roared through his veins
Sam Stone was completely consumed by his addiction to drugs, which he describes as a kind of gold.
Like a thousand railroad trains
Sam Stone's addiction to drugs was extremely powerful and unstoppable, like a train roaring down the railroad tracks.
And eased his mind in the hours that he chose
Drugs provided temporary relief and escape for Sam Stone from the difficulties and pain of his life.
While the kids ran around wearin' other peoples' clothes
Sam Stone's inability to provide for his family meant that his children were wearing hand-me-downs.
Sam Stone was alone
Sam Stone's addiction had alienated him from his family and friends, leaving him isolated and alone.
When he popped his last balloon
Sam Stone died from a drug overdose, possibly from injecting heroin into a balloon.
Climbing walls while sitting in a chair
Sam Stone's addiction had taken over his life and he felt trapped and helpless, like he was climbing walls while sitting down.
Well, he played his last request
Sam Stone listened to music on the radio as he was dying and requested a song to be played for him.
While the room smelled just like death
Sam Stone's death was an inevitable and tragic conclusion to a life that was consumed by drug addiction.
With an overdose hovering in the air
There was a sense of foreboding and inevitability surrounding Sam Stone's death from a drug overdose.
But life had lost its fun
Sam Stone's life had become devoid of joy, happiness, and meaning due to his addiction to drugs.
There was nothing to be done
In the end, there wasn't anything anyone could do to save Sam Stone from the destructive path he had set himself on.
But trade his house that he bought on the GI bill
Sam Stone had to sell his home, which he had bought using the GI bill, to pay for his addiction.
For a flag-draped casket on a local hero's hill
Sam Stone died a tragic death as a result of his addiction and was memorialized with a flag-draped coffin in a place reserved for heroes.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: John Prine
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@guitarjonn7103
"There's a hole in Daddy's arm, where all the money goes", probably the most powerful, heartbreaking line in a song I've ever heard, especially after he tells you how "the kids run around wearing other people clothes". God how I miss this truth teller of a man.
@littlebird7383
“The gold rolled through his veins/like a thousand railroad trains” messes me and my husband up to
@mikesalvadore9295
No doubt!
@85geoffm
Rings so true these days. My God.
@brandoncorynagley92388
Pure reality especially today
@ericwolfe7673
Jesus died for nothing I suppose
@Albe3331
As a veteran, 70-74, I can relate personally to the song. Got that monkey off my back in late 73. Didn’t want to go home in the shape I was in. To this day in January 2023 is still listen to the song to remind me of where I could be as opposed to where I am.
@chef42069
Thank you for your service
@markdodds641
I'm with you my brother
@knoon3408
God bless you friend